Chief Flynn reports on how officers are responding to increase in homicides

Milwaukee's police chief revealed there were 20 homicides in the city August -- the most in any month since 2005, and there were nearly 80 non-fatal shootings.

WISN 12 News reporter Terry Sater spoke with the mother of a 16-year-old boy, who was just gunned down over a look he gave, about the changes she'd like to see.

"Keenan just turned 16 July 14," Annette Payne said.

The grieving mother said she's grateful her son's accused killer, 27-year-old Randell Thompson, is in jail.

"But I just never thought my son would be someone that would be gunned down in broad daylight on his way to get a bag of potato chips and looking forward to trying to become the young man I raised him to be," Payne said.

Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn delivered a special report to the Fire and Police Commission on Thursday night, talking about his department's response to a rash of deadly shootings in July and August.

"There's too much gunfire. It's being perpetrated by a fairly narrow slice of the community, and we're on them," Flynn said.

These are a few of several actions the chief said officers are engaged in:

Relentless followup of gun crimes

Hotspot and micro-policing deployment

Increased neighborhood foot patrols

Community engagement

"He has to get these guns off the street. He has to put police officers more visible in the communities of which this is happening," Payne said.

Officers are also cracking down with more aggressive probation and parole checks.

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